


it's getting stronger; my feelings for you

by Lobattsonlegends



Category: Apex Legends (Video Games)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/F, Fluff, Light Angst, One Shot, Sexual Tension, maybe i can convert and convince some people to like this ship with us, this is literally for me and my 2 friends deadass, we're the only ones that ship this LMAOO
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-14
Updated: 2020-09-14
Packaged: 2021-03-06 22:34:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,115
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26456488
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lobattsonlegends/pseuds/Lobattsonlegends
Summary: "Come on, you guys should totally try this. What's the harm?" Elliott smirked at her, unnoticed by Natalie, who beamed and nodded as enthusiastically as a puppy seeing a bowl of treats. If Loba wasn't a master of hiding her emotions at this point, steam would most likely be blowing out of her ears."I think it sounds fun! Come on, Loba." Natalie said, and the smile on her face was all it took for Loba to fold in mere seconds, nerves shooting around her stomach.She sighed."Fine."
Relationships: Loba Andrade/Wattson | Natalie Paquette
Comments: 15
Kudos: 32





	it's getting stronger; my feelings for you

**Author's Note:**

> this is probably only gonna be seen by my 2 friends so hey hope you guys like it DJFSDJK
> 
> if others happen to give this story a chance, then i also hope you enjoy it !! it's based on a tiktok my friend sent me where two girls are basically doing the pocky game but they were using something else in the video?? i couldnt tell what it was so i just made them use pocky in this story lmaoo anyway again hope you enjoy <3
> 
> title is from "can't get you out of my mind" by dreamcatcher <3

Loba slammed down her shot glass onto the bar top, the alcohol burning down her throat and settling in her stomach. Her face pinched and she shook her head quickly, levelling Elliott with a sharp glare afterwards.

"What the hell was that?" She rasped, almost certain there were singed holes in her esophagus from whatever concoction that was. Elliott looked down at the glass and tapped his chin for a few moments. He shrugged and smiled at her, as carefree as ever.

"That's a great question. And the answer... Is that I have no idea." Elliott chuckled weakly at his friend. He squeaked and dodged the oncoming swing in his direction, Loba growling at him at the same time.

"Witt, I swear if you ever give me something like that again I'll-"

"Okay, okay, come on. Let's just take it easy." Elliott held his hands up in surrender. "You said you wanted something strong to take your mind off things, didn't you?"

"Strong, not a potential fire hazard inside my lovely throat." Loba replied, sliding the shot glass towards him and grumbling under her breath all the while. She really shouldn't even be at Witt's bar in the first place; she had a lot of thinking and planning to do, after all. Her encounter with Revenant, Anita at her side, caught her completely off guard and sent her into a spiral. When they returned, everything was in shambles, which also didn't help matters. Crypto had been shunned, Caustic holed himself up in his lab, Ajay and Octavio stuck close together, always whispering about something.

And Natalie...

The poor girl's heart had been ripped in two. Mentor and potential best friend hurting her in different ways, different levels of pain that Loba knew all too well at this point in her long life. Loba's heart ached every time she heard muffled sobs from the girl's room each time she wandered past it. She would pause and briefly debate entering, but would ultimately vote against it and leave the girl be.

She would only make things worse. After all...

She set everything in motion, didn't she?

"Hellooo? Earth to Loba?" Elliott waved his hand in front of her face. She was brought back to the present with a shake of her head, looking up at her friend. He must have sensed her inner turmoil, because he simply grabbed the shot glass in front of her and poured her another drink. He slid it close to her with a warm, inviting smile that comforted Loba more than she cared to admit.

"They say bartenders are the best listeners, you know." Elliott said. He leaned over the top of the bar and planted his elbow on it, his hand cradling his chin. He wiggled his eyebrows in her direction, and she fought the urge to empty the contents of her stomach all over his precious bar. "Come on, spill."

"No." She shot it down as quick as possible. As much as she liked Witt's company, there were things that were better left unsaid. One of those things was her rapid fire thoughts about the Revenant situation, and the other-

"Is this about your crush on Natalie?"

Loba froze, hand stopping halfway in her motion to grab her shot glass. She shot her eyes up to Elliott, a sly smirk on his face at catching her off guard so easily. Loba narrowed her eyes and quickly recovered from the shock, grabbing her drink. She remained silent as she shot it down her throat, much smoother and tastier than the last one. She placed the glass back down afterwards, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand.

"I'm 34 years old, Witt. Crushes are for _crianças_." Loba replied in a sharp tone. Elliott stared at her blankly, to which she sighed and leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms, and then her legs underneath the top of the bar. "Children, Witt. It means children."

Elliott's face turned pink, and he let out a soft 'pfft' and waved his hand. "Uh, yeah, _duh_ _._ I knew that. What chump wouldn't know that, huh?" Elliott rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment, before shifting his focus back onto her. He pointed at her with a glint in his eye. "You didn't deny it though."

Loba clenched her jaw. She wasn't going to get into this with him- there were more important things to discuss, more important things happening around them than Loba's unresolved personal feelings about the engineer. Even if what he said was true, Natalie's heart had just been broken barely a day ago by two important people in her life. Loba may be a thief and have questionable morals, but even she knew it wasn't the time to be confessing her undying love to the girl.

Not that she loved her. Definitely not.

"I'm not talking about Natalie to you, Witt. Leave it be." Loba snapped. The man opened his mouth to retaliate, only for him to shut it and his eyes flicking to something behind Loba. His smirk was suddenly back, and before Loba could inquire why, he looked at her with mischief glowing in his eyes.

"Fine by me. We don't have to talk about her." Elliott paused briefly, before tacking on, "You can just talk _to_ her, instead!"

Loba stiffened. Confusion swirled in her eyes, but it would soon wash away at the sound of Natalie's bubbly, beautiful voice behind her. Much closer than anticipated. 

"Bonjour!" Natalie said. She plopped down in the chair right next to Loba, and boy, was Loba in for a shock at what she saw.

Loba came to the bar shortly after her mission with Anita, and had remained in her battle clothes as a result of pure laziness and no energy to peel the tight bodysuit off of her body. She just wanted to drink and drink and drink, and was sorely disappointed at how excessively sober she still was. 

But, for once she was grateful that her vision was clear as day and her mind suddenly empty, because she's bared witness to Natalie _not_ in battle clothes, but rather with her equipment off and her blonde hair free from the helmet she always wore in battle. It fell in layers, just above her chin and bangs barely touching her eyebrows. Loba's eyes absentmindedly roamed lower, eyes straying from the simple brown jacket over top her t shirt and jeans, before swiftly returning her gaze to her soft face before those striking blue eyes caught her checking her out so blatantly.

Thankfully, Natalie was looking at Elliott, asking about different types of drinks and what they were. Elliott was explaining smoothly, until he caught Loba's eyes, the pair locking eyes. Elliott suddenly smirked at her, and before Loba could protest in any way, he motioned towards her.

"Loba here is actually more of an expert than I am. She's ordered almost everything on the menu." Elliott said. Natalie's eyes sparkled when she turned towards her, and Loba's stomach turned itself inside out as Natalie reached out for her, her fingertips brushing over her arm for the briefest of moments. Despite being covered, that simple touch caused goosebumps to bloom up and down said arm, and Loba internally cursed at Elliott for doing this to her.

"Oooooh, how exciting! What do you recommend?" Natalie beamed at her, almost blinding her, and she clapped her hands together, as childlike as ever. It was... Odd, considering everything that happened to her just the other day. Loba wasn't sure what to make of it, but she bit her tongue in order to keep all her questions at bay. Natalie didn't owe her any answers.

And, if she were honest with herself, she was too busy revelling in Natalie's smile to care.

"Um," Loba croaked, before clearing her throat and straightening herself up in her chair. She saw Elliott watching the pair like a hawk in the corner of her eye and proceeded to shift in the chair. 'Come on, Loba.' She thought to herself. 'Get your shit together.'

Loba remained stoic on the outside, merely tilting her head in Natalie's direction, almost studying her for a moment. Natalie seemed unfazed, though, and returned her gaze tenfold. Loba ignored her swirling stomach and attempted some semblance of composure. After all, flirting was a speciality of hers, even if most of it occurred when someone was on the other end of her gun. Regardless, she took pride in flustering her opponents, catching them off guard. Natalie didn't need to be any different. Sure, she made her internally combust with every interaction they ever had, but as long as Loba kept calm and treated it like one of the Apex Games rather than a casual conversation, she could get through it just fine.

She hoped.

So, with that little pep talk dealt with, Loba reached up to play with one of her own braids, smirk forming on her cherry-red lips as if a switch had been turned on inside of her.

"Everyone has a preference." Loba practically purred. She hoped it was enough to mask how shaky it actually was. "Now, what's yours, beautiful?" She said it softly, as if mostly asking herself and not the woman in question. Loba hummed thoughtfully, flicking her eyes up and down Natalie's body. When she looked at Natalie's face again, she saw the slightest pink tint to her cheeks. "Small, delicate, sweet. Could you even handle something strong?"

Natalie merely blinked at her for a solid few seconds. Loba internally cheered, confidence swelling in her chest for those several seconds of Natalie staring blankly at her, the engineer rendered speechless. Elliott was eyeing them from behind the bar, and she glanced at him with an air of cockiness, raising an eyebrow at him. The man innocently raised his hands, small smile on his lips.

Loba wasn't sure what to make of that reaction, but she didn't have time to investigate or question him, because Natalie had seemingly recovered from her flirty remarks. Her blue eyes suddenly shone with an unreadable sparkle, and Loba didn't have time to prepare for when she leaned closer to her, her perfume wafting all over her and into her nose, almost suffocating her with the fruity, sweet scent. Loba blinked in slight surprise, but didn't back away as Natalie's hand clamped down onto Loba's arm.

"I think you underestimate me, cat burglar." Natalie replied. She was teasing her- her fingertips practically dancing along her leather-clad arm, so soft and simultaneously scalding, burning a path with each touch. Loba maintained their eye contact though, not one to back down. She took a silent breath and slowly licked her lips.

"Oh? I wonder how much you can take, _querida (_ sweetheart)." Loba drawled, promptly pushing away the almost _childish_ butterflies that absorbed her stomach at the way Natalie's eyes turned mischievous and downright evil. 

Loba could have easily stayed that way, drowning in Natalie's ocean-like eyes. But, of course, Elliott had to make his presence known again, butting into their very important conversation.

"Uh, hey, guys! Totally still here, you know. Just in case you forgot." He tacked on a nervous chuckle at the end. Loba suppressed the frustrated growl that was desperate to escape her throat when Natalie tore her eyes away from her to look at the man. Loba snapped her gaze over to him, and if he was scared at all, he was doing an amazing job at masking it.

"Oh!" Natalie's voice pierced through the murderous scenarios in her head involving Elliott. "Apologies, Elliott!" Natalie's laugh was soft and dreamlike, and it was hard to believe that she was very explicitly flirting back at Loba just mere seconds ago. Loba's mind reeled at that fact, before Elliott once again interrupted her thoughts.

"Let's get some drinks into you, eh? I've got just the thing!" Elliott beamed and suddenly, two glasses were placed in front of the women, filled to the brim with something fruity, smelling of raspberries and hints of vodka. Not Loba's usual choice of beverage, but Natalie 'oohed' and 'aahed' in amazement, as if she had never seen a drink before in her life. Without much hesitation, Natalie downed half the drink in a few gulps. Loba's raised her eyebrows in shock at this unexpected turn of events, Natalie placing the half-full glass back down and licking her lips.

"Oh, _très bon!_ (very good)" Natalie squealed, once again clapping her hands. She seemed even giddier than before, if that were possible, and violently vibrated in her seat. Loba huffed a quiet laugh at the engineer, almost in disbelief at how one single, small woman could contain so much energy and bounciness. 

It was adorable.

"Loba, you have to try it! It's _fantastique!_ Please?" Natalie turned to her, now, and clasped her hands together. She looked at her with big puppy dog eyes, wide, bright smile overtaking her features as she looked at her. Loba's stomach did that thing again; swirled and filled with a level of warmth she always felt around Natalie. It was getting hard to ignore, and as she picked up her glass and also emptied half her glass with the sweet drink, for once, she figured it was okay not to ignore it.

"Mmm, lovely." Loba breathed out, wiping her bottom lip with her thumb, catching a stray drop of the beverage. She glanced to Natalie, and could have sworn she saw her eyes trail down to her lips for that brief second, but when she tried to investigate further, Natalie was back to drinking again, finishing off the drink.

"Glad to be of service, ladies." Elliott piped up, finger guns accompanying his statement. Loba rolled her eyes and finished her drink as well, licking her lips afterwards. It was then that she realised that Elliott was clutching his phone in his hand. Loba's eyebrows furrowed, and before she could ask him, he suddenly pushed something towards the two of them. Loba glanced down to it, and raised an eyebrow.

"You guys might be hungry, you know? Here, on the house!" Elliott flashed a smile that caused Natalie to giggle. Loba scoffed and picked up the box of chocolate sticks, dangling it towards the man.

"Is this all your bar can afford, Witt? Pocky?" Loba teased, and Elliott flushed with embarrassment when Natalie laughed delicately into her hand next to her, the sound music to her ears. 

"Okay, for your information, my bar can afford lots of things!" Elliott shot back, crossing his arms. When Loba still looked unconvinced, he groaned and snatched the box from her, swiftly opening it up and grabbing one of the chocolate snacks. "Anyway, let's have some fun with it! A friendly challenge, you might say."

Loba immediately felt her stomach drop. Elliott's "challenges" were never a good sign, but clearly Natalie wasn't aware of this, or perhaps she didn't care. Because she gasped and leaned forward in excitement.

"A challenge? Sounds _electrifying!"_ Natalie giggled at her own pun. Elliott barked out a laugh and high-fived her, pretending to wipe tears from his eyes with his other hand. Loba rolled her eyes.

"Here." Elliott eventually handed Loba the stick. He raised his phone and aimed it at the pair. "Challenge: bite both ends together until you can't anymore. With no hands! Simple, right?"

Loba almost snapped the chocolate snack in two in shock. She stared at Elliott with a fire that was only reserved for the battlefield, mildly surprised at how he barely flinched. 

"Boring." Loba deadpanned. She huffed and placed the piece in between her and Natalie's drinking glasses. Elliott frowned from behind his phone and gave her a look briefly, before a smirk formed on his lips. Before Loba could say anything, he gestured towards the chocolate snack.

"Come on, you guys should totally try this. What's the harm?" Elliott smirked at her, unnoticed by Natalie, who beamed and nodded as enthusiastically as a puppy seeing a bowl of treats. If Loba wasn't a master of hiding her emotions at this point, steam would most likely be blowing out of her ears.

"I think it sounds fun! Come on, Loba." Natalie said, and the smile on her face was all it took for Loba to fold in mere seconds, nerves shooting around her stomach.

She sighed.

"Fine."

Natalie clapped her hands together, and Elliott continued to smirk behind his phone, to which Loba furrowed her eyebrows at him. Once he noticed the look on her face, he wiggled the phone in his hand.

"Oh, I'm totally recording this." Elliott said.

Whatever demise Loba had planned for him in that moment fell out the window, because suddenly she was on her feet with Natalie in front of her, in the middle of the bar, and a stick of pocky in between them both. Natalie looked up at her and placed the stick in her mouth, bouncing on her toes in excitement.

"Allons-y! I'm ready." Natalie shouted above the music, muffled only slightly due to the obstruction of the snack in her mouth. Loba, being much taller than her because of her heels, stared down at her in disbelief. Does Natalie not realise what could happen if neither of them back away in time? Does she have no care in the world? Does that mean...

Her feelings were returned and all the flirting wasn't a joke to her?

Loba craned her neck to the point that it became quite uncomfortable, but of course she wouldn't back down from a challenge like this, especially when it involved someone she was blatantly attracted to. She delicately bit down on her end of the stick, Natalie's mouth already on the other end of it. She sensed Elliott's phone aimed at the both of them, and as the beat of the music blared throughout the bar and pulsed through her body, Elliott yelled to them as loud as he could above the noise.

"One, two, three, go!" He shouted.

Loba's hands stayed rigid at her sides, conscious of the rules that Elliott had set for them in this stupid challenge. Internally, she grumbled to herself, but outwardly, she chewed along the chocolate side of the snack slow and steady. Natalie matched her pace from her end, their eyes locking together as their lips got closer and closer as each second passed. Natalie's eyes were dark from the minimal lighting at this spot in the bar, almost pitch black like the midnight sky, the strobe lights above them briefly flashing across them to gift Loba with that same excited and mischievous look every few seconds. Their lips approached one another as the game continued, and Loba was not embarrassed to say that her eyes flicked down to Natalie's.

There was only a small space between them, now, and Loba realised right then how difficult it actually was to keep her hands to herself. The urge she felt- the craving sensation in her stomach to just reach out, to touch Natalie's hips, her sides, _anything_ \- to pull her closer, to press their bodies together to feel that surge of warmth between them was so strong that she almost _wanted_ to lose the game now. 

Her lips were _right there_ , just a breath away. She expected Natalie to pull away, to chicken out at this point the further they chewed along. If neither of them moved away, their lips would surely brush. Loba's heart raced at that thought, but as she took her next bite, consciously pulling her lips back the furthest they could go in order to avoid the inevitable brush of lips, for Natalie's sake on the off chance she wasn't comfortable with it, Natalie's eyes flicked from her eyes to her lips for a brief second. It was short, but Loba saw it, but before she could do anything or prepare herself, Natalie leaned in even more. The stick was practically nonexistent between their mouths now, but Natalie still continued. Her bottom lip brushed ever so slightly against Loba's with the movement, and Loba sucked in a breath sharply.

"Loba..." Natalie's voice was somehow so soft and deafeningly loud in her ears, the utterance of her name sounding almost breathless. 

Loba's heart pounded painfully in her chest, and when she met Natalie's gaze, the last of her resolve crumbled into dust. Loba shot her hands forward and gripped Natalie's hips just as Natalie's hands touched the sides of her neck. Loba abandoned all rhyme and reason, said 'fuck the rules' and surged forward, the last minuscule piece of the snack buried and swallowed up in their mouths as they kissed. 

It was so different to how Loba kissed others before her. Loba didn't allow herself the luxury of love, nor did she allow herself any sort of gentleness or softness when it came to her 'relationships'. It was always one and done- one night stands, with people that didn't care who she was, nor did she care about who any of them were.

But Natalie cared. Natalie knew her, knew of her plans and her past, but still chose to be around her. She chose to help her, and put aside her differences with Crypto to be there for her after everything. And it was all of that, that Loba could feel in this kiss they shared. It started off heated and fast- Loba hungrily pressing their bodies together in one smooth motion, the heat simmering between them as they connected. She wanted to feel it _all_. She wanted those lips to devour her whole, to steal all the air inside of her until she was a husk on the floor.

But, this was Natalie- sweet, beautiful Natalie, and when they swept each other up into this kiss, it quickly morphed into a slow and gentle pace, courtesy of Natalie. She encouraged Loba to slow down, her supple, pink, soft lips guiding her, until they were both just holding each other as gently as possible. 

Their lips slotted together perfectly like two lonely puzzle pieces finding their match after so long. Loba felt Natalie's thumbs caressing the undersides of her jawline, and she wasn't ashamed to admit that she melted under her touch, almost sinking all of her weight on top of the other girl. It was becoming addictive to stay that way, lips sealed together in a slow, steady rhythm with Natalie humming with content into her mouth. But, the craning of her neck was getting too much, and her lungs began to burn.

She finally pulled away, breathing uneven and one of her braids suddenly unkempt and almost coming undone. She wondered how that happened, but the most of her thoughts dissipated when Natalie opened her eyes to look at her, a wide, blinding smile on the lips that Loba just kissed. Her eyes sparkled as she looked up at her, and Loba allowed herself a genuine smile in return.

A low whistle interrupted their moment, and they whipped their heads to their left, where Elliott still stood behind the bar, phone still aimed right at them. He lowered it when they looked at him, clearly done recording the whole event, and he smiled cheekily at them both.

"You both totally lost by the way. I said no hands!" Elliott winked at them, but Loba was too happy to care about that anymore. She ignored him and gazed back at Natalie, who beamed up at her with an adorable pink hue to her cheeks, a giggle escaping her lips. And as Loba's lips tingled from what they shared together, she realised that maybe it was okay to allow herself to be happy. Just this once.

Of course, it wouldn't be easy with the two of them. Loba played a hand in all the events that transpired up until this point, because she wasn't honest with everyone. And Natalie had her own issues with Crypto and Caustic, and the guilt of possibly allowing that to happen gnawed on Loba's heart. But, she hoped she and Natalie could come out of it unscathed. Maybe Loba didn't deserve it, maybe Natalie should pursue someone else, or look to something else for comfort during all of this.

But, Loba was selfish. And if Natalie wanted this as much as her, and it was her choice to stay...

"You're wrong, Witt." Loba replied with a smirk, wrapping her arm around Natalie's waist to pull her flush against her side. Natalie squeaked cutely, but looked up at her with a happy expression. Loba looked at Elliott, smirk unwavering, and tilted her head towards the woman next to her. 

"I think I won."


End file.
